Loading or unloading apparatus



(N Model.)

P. -MGDONOUGE LOADING 0R UNLOADING APPARATUS.

No'. 572,023, Patented Nov= 24, 1896.

wifgesm L TN NORWS PETERS CA FH N C UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRANK MCDONOUGH, OF EAU CLAIRE, VVISCONSIN.

LOADING OR UNLOADING APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 572,023, dated November24, 1896. Application iile. March 17,1896. Serial No. 583,600.(Nolmodel.)

To @ZZ whom, it may concern:

Beit known that I, FRANK McDoNoUGH, a citizen of the United States,residing at Eau Claire, in the county of Eau Claire and State oflVisconsin, have invented a new and useful Loading and UnloadingApparatus, of which the following is a specification.

rlhis invention relates to loading and unloading apparatus 5 and it hasfor its objects to provide a new and useful apparatus of this characterespecially adapted to provide simple and efficient means for loading thepile of lumber onto a wagon or yard-car or other transport, and alsohaving means to provide for unloading lumber from a wagon or othertransport.

lVith these and other obj ects in view, which will readily appear as thenature of the invention is better understood, the same consists in thenovel construction, combination, and arrangement of parts hereinaftermore fully described, illustrated, and claimed.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly in section, of aloading and unloading apparatus constructed in accordance with thisinvention and illustrating a pile of lumber about to be loaded onto alumberwagon. Fig. 2 is a transverse sectional view on the line 2 2 ofFig. 1. Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail elevation of the trip mechanism forlowering the pile of lumber onto the live shifting-roll.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, the numeral 1 designates asupporting bed or frame having a pair of parallel bearingtimbers 2, onthe upper sides of which timbers are mounted the bearing or journalbones 3, which receive the spindle extremities 4 of the deadpiling-rolls 5, which are arranged transversely between the pair ofbearing-timbers and are disposed in the same horizontal plane to providefor supporting a pile of lumber 6 thereon, as illustrated in Fig.. 1 ofthe drawings. The dead-rolls 5 may be arranged in any desired number,but preferably only two of such rolls are employed to provide a supportfor the pile of lumber 6 at one side of the vertical center of suchpile, and at one end of the bearing-timbers 2 the latter are furtherprovided on their upper sides with suitable bearings 7 fora liveshifting-roll S, which is designed to be given a positive rotation bymeans of suitable drivin g connections therewith to provide for shiftingthe pile of lumber in the manner to be presently referred to. y

At one side of and in close proximity to the live shifting-roll 8 thebearing-timbers 2 have mounted on their upper sides the bearingblocks 9,which loosely receive therein the rounded spindle ends 10 of anoscillating tripbar 11. The oscillating trip-bar .11 is arrangedtransversely above the pair of bearing-timbers 2, so as to be disposedtransversely beneath the pile of lumber handled by the apparatus, andsaid transverse tripbar 11 is provided at its upper edge with alongitudinal supporting-ridge 12 and at one side of said ridge with aside bevel 13, onto which bevel the vpile of lumber works itself toprovide for tilting the trip-bar in one .direction, as will be furtherexplained. At a point between its ends the oscillating transversetrip-bar 1l has rigidly connected therewith the upper end of a link 14,the lower end of which link is pivotally connected at 15 to the innerend of a trip-latch 16. The trip-latch 16 is provided with a beveledouter end 17 and an engaging hook 18, which latter is adapted to benormally engaged with a fixed catch-bar 19, secured at one side of thesupporting bed or frame and at one end of thebearing-timbers 2 below theplane of the live shifting-roll 8.

Normally the engagement of the trip-latch 16 with the fixed catch-bar 19provides for holding the trip-bar 11 in an upright position, whichdisposes the upper supporting-ridge 12 of such bar in a plane above theplane of the top surface of the adjacent live shiftingroll 8, as clearlyillustrated in Fig. 3 of the drawings. The planks or lengths of lumberare carried from the mill in the usual manner and are piled one on topof the other on the piling-rolls 5 and the upright trip-bar 11, asillustrated in Fig. 1 of the drawings, to form the pile 6. This pile oflumber rests directly on the said piling-rolls 5 and on the ridge 12 ofthe bar 11, but is held by such bar out of contact with the liveshifting-roll 8, and in this connection it will also be noted that bothof the dead piling-rolls 5 are preferably disposed at one side of thevertical center of the pile of lumberin order to insure a positiveoperation of the trip mechanism. Vith the parts of the apparatus adjusted and the pile of lumber disposed as just described the said pile oflumber is ready forv loading ICO onto a wagon, car, or other transport,and in the drawings I have illustrated a lumber wagon or rack 2O inposition for receiving the pile of lumber. The wagon 2O or othertransport is preferably provided with a series of lum ber-s upportingrolls 21, which provide for the ready rolling of the pile of lumber ontothe wagon and off of the same, and in connection with one of thesupporting-rolls 21 on said wagon 20 is illustrated an operatingcrank22, the purpose of which will be referred to. The wagon 2O or othertransport is backed up to the apparatus to the position illustrated inFig. 1, and is preferably designed to strike the outer beveled end ofthe trip-latch 16 and thereby disengage the same from the catch-bar 19,which disengagement leaves the tripbar 11 free to rockin its bearings,so that the pile of lumber will Vwork onto the side bevel 13 of thetrip-bar and thereby oscillate the same to such a position as to allowthe pile of lumber to drop directly onto the live shifting-roll S, therotation of which roll will shift the pile of lumber off of the rolls 5and onto the rolls 2l of the wagon or other transport, as will bereadily understood by those skilled in the art. By manipulating theoperating-crank 22 the pile of lumber can be readily unloaded from thewagon 2O or other transport.

With the trip-bar 1l in its tilted position it will be obvious that theapparatus may be employed for unloading a pile of lumberfrom a wagon orother transport by rotating the live shifting-roll in a direction thatwill shift the pile of lumber back onto the dead pilingrolls 5, fromwhich rolls the pile of lumber maybe carried to aplaner or othermachinery.

Irrespective of the trip mechanism for lowering the pile of lumber 6onto the live shifting-roll 8, it will be obvious that suchshifting-roll may be used independently for loading-single planks orlengths of sawed timber on a wagon or car, and in this connection it isto be observed that the live shifting-roll 8 is simply a continuous liveshaft that is supported in the position described, so that lumber whichis placed thereon will be loaded or unloaded in the desired direction,and said live shaft is extended beyond its bearings and connected withbelt or other suitable driving connection.

The trip-latclrlG may be operatedmanually or in a variety of differentways other than herein described, such, for instance, by the meansillustrated in Fig. 1 'of the drawings.

In this figure of the drawings the rear axle of the wagon 2O isillustrated as having attached thereto a short supporting-arm 23, onwhich is pivoted a bell-crank 24C, to one arm of which is connected oneend ofa pull wire' or rope 25, which extends to the front of the wagonand is preferably designed to be within convenient reach of the driver,who can operate the bell-crank 24 Without leaving his seat. Thebell-crank 24 preferably has attached thereto at 26 one end of areleasing-bar 27,

which normally hangs in a pendent position, but which is designed to bethrown up by means of the Wire or rope 25 against the outer beveled endof the trip-latch 16, and thereby disengage the same from the catch-bar19,

when the wagon is backed up to the position illustrated in Fig. l of thedrawings.

Various changes in the form, proportion, and the minor details ofconstruction may be resorted to without departing from the principle orsacrificing any of the advantages of this invention.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed, and desired to besecured by Letters Patent, is-

1. In an apparatus of the class described, the frame, dead piling-rollsmounted on said frame in the same horizontal plane, a live shifting-rollmounted on the frame beyond the piling-rolls and in a lower plane thanthe same, and a trip device arranged intermediate of the dead and liverolls and normally supporting the material to be handled out of conta-ctwith 'said live roll, substantially as Set forth.

2. In an apparatus of the class described, the frame, parallel deadpiling-rolls mounted in fixed positions on said frame, and a liveshifting-roll mounted in a fixed position on the frame beyond andparallel with the piling-rolls and in a lower plane than the latter,substantially as set forth.

3. In an apparatus of the class described, the frame, dead piling-rollsmounted on said frame, a live shifting-roll mounted on the frame beyondthe piling-rolls, a trip-bar mounted on the frame at one side of thelive roll, and a latch connection with said tri p-bar to provide fornormally holding the upper edge thereof in a plane above the top surfaceof the adjacent live roll, substantially as set forth.

4. In an apparatus of the class described, the frame, dead piling-rollsmounted on the frame, a live shifting-roll mounted on the frame beyondthe piling-rolls, an oscillating trip-bar journaled on the frame at oneside of the live roll and provid ed at its upper edge with alongitudinal supporting-ridge, and at one side of said ridge with a sidebevel,.a link rigidly connected at its upper end with said trip-bar, afixed catch-bar secured on the frame, and a trip-latch pivotallyconnected at one end with the lower end of said link and provided with ahook at its outer end adapted to normally engage said catch-bar to holdthe trip-bar in an upright position and thereby dispose its supportingridge in a plane above the top surface of the adjacent live roll,substantially as set forth.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

FRANK MCDONOUGH. lVitnesses:

JOHN H. SIGGERS, THEoDoRE DALTON.

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